Chestermere City Council tabled the Rainbow Road Proposed Redesignation Bylaw again during the July 5 meeting.
NORR Architects on behalf of Truman Developments applied for a land redesignation of 3.26 hectares of land that is currently zoned as local commercial, to a low-rise multi-unit residential district in Rainbow Falls.
City council tabled the bylaw for the first time during the June 14 public hearing.
The proposal was expected to provide an opportunity for residential development that would also support nearby commercial and industrial land.
Before the public hearing, the city received four letters in support of the bylaw, expressing concerns about tenant turnover, and difficulty finding long-term tenants.
However, the city received another 30 letters in opposition, with one submission having more than 20 co-signatures.
The letters in opposition expressed concerns regarding preserving commercial land in Chestermere, Rainbow Road being unable to handle more growth, and the lack of parks, schools and other amenities in the area.
In 2017, the site was changed from urban to local commercial, and since then, the applicant and landowner have tried to market the land.
“The site was changed from urban transition to local commercial, in 2017. In that time the applicant and landowner have tried to market it and have decided that it’s not feasible, and would prefer to go with the designation, or something similar to allow a townhouse proposal,” Senior Planner Community Growth and Infrastructure Jordan Furness said during the June 14 public hearing.
“The bylaw proposes that the larger parcel of land will be retained for commercial uses, and the applicant is looking for the southern parcel to be converted to residential,” Furness said.
The applicant explained in the public hearing that the location’s characteristics make it ideal for residential, as it has large sites, multiple ways of access, schools, places of worship, public transit, and commercial retail.
However, the developer and city administration have requested to table the bylaw and continue gathering community feedback.
“The developer and administration have been working together and listening to the concerns that were brought by the residents at the public hearing. The developer decided to listen to residents and work with administration on the concerns they have heard,” Legislative Advisor Jerry Gautreau said. “The applicant has the right first and foremost to have this postponed today, to work on those issues.”
A new public hearing will depend on the information collected. Gautreau explained that if there is a significant change in information, another public hearing will be scheduled.
“Administration will look at the proposal coming through and determine if a new public hearing needs to be done, if it’s way out of scope of what the public has seen, then administration would recommend a public hearing not only to council but to the applicant,” Gautreau said.
The developer has indicated to city administration that there are still questions about the bylaw that need to be answered, and more public feedback needs to be gathered before going forward.
“Administration feels that it’s important that we’re transparent and honest with the public with what the reason is that we’re tabling it today, and that is because the applicant would still like to go back for public comments, and to really hear everything that’s there. It’s the applicant who has asked for this, we’re bringing it to council,” Gautreau said.
“We tabled this because the plan was not acceptable at that point in time,” City Councillor Stephen Hanley said. “Let’s let the applicant come up with a revised plan, come to us, reschedule a public hearing, and we decide if it’s a go or a no go.”
